The NFL has hired a new top doctor to help with their concussion issue. And this time, he’s not a rheumatologist.
The league announced they had hired Dr. Allen Sills as their chief medical officer, a new full-time position they’ve created.
Sills was most recently a professor of neurological surgery, orthopaedic surgery and rehabilitation at Vanderbilt, and was the founder and co-director of the Vanderbilt Sports Concussion Center.
“There is no higher priority for the NFL than player health and safety and we continually seek to raise our standards and then surpass them,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in their release. “We sought a highly-credentialed physician and leader with experience as a clinician and researcher, and Dr. Sills’ extensive experience caring for athletes makes him the right choice for this important position.”
Regardless Sills’ resume, which is extensive and impressive, that’s a long way from the league hiring Jets team doctor Elliott Pellman, the rheumatologist and Paul Tagliabue’s personal physician they put in charge of the league’s concussion committee. Pellman has since been nudged into retirement.